Roy Hibbert

Hibbert heads into the 2014-15 season with his sights set on redeeming himself following epicly disastrous playoff struggles that left a black mark on his entire 2013-14 season. Even before his playoff descent into mediocrity, Hibbert suffered a drop-off in every meaningful ...

Hibbert statistically had his worst season in 2014-15 since his rookie year. He played in 76 games and averaged 10.6 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.2 steals and 1.6 blocks in 25 minutes per game. He has a player option for the 2015-16 season for $15 million should he decide to stay in Indiana.

The 2012-13 campaign was a tale of two halves for Hibbert. Prior to the All-Star break, the Pacers big man averaged just 10.0 points while shooting 41 percent from the floor and 69 percent from the charity stripe. Hibbert attributed the slow start to a right wrist injury, which forced him to shoot left handed on a more regular basis. The wrist woes faded as the season progressed, and Hibbert ended up playing arguably the best basketball of his career by the end of the season. The 26-year-old center averaged 15.7 points in the final 26 games of the regular season and erupted for averages of 17.0 points and 9.9 rebounds in 19 playoff games. He also finished the year with a career-high 2.6 blocks per game, cementing himself as one of the better shot blockers in the league. In hopes of building on his late-season surge, Hibbert worked alongside Tim Duncan this offseason to refine his offensive skills. Now healthy, Hibbert should be able to avoid an early-season slump and put himself in a position to post some of the better numbers of his career.

2012-13

After years of hype, Hibbert finally cemented himself in as a reliable fantasy option in 2011-12. On the way to his first All-Star appearance, Hibbert put together career-high averages of 12.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.0 blocks while playing 30 minutes per game. He also improved his efficiency, shooting a personal best 49.7 percent from the floor while hitting 71.1 percent of his freebies. As a reward for his stellar season, the Pacers recognized Hibbert as one of the teamís primary building blocks this summer and inked him to a four-year, $58-million deal. At 25, Hibbert is just entering his prime. He has shown steady improvement in his low-post game on both ends of the court, developing a decent jump hook while getting better at protecting the rim on defense. The fifth-year center has also shown strides in the mental aspect of his game by committing fewer fouls, which has led to additional playing time. Given his age and year-to-year improvements over the past three seasons, we probably havenít seen the best from Hibbert yet. Take that into consideration when targeting him in drafts.

2011-12

Hibbert was one of the more hyped up fantasy sleepers heading into the 2010-11 season. While he didnít exactly explode onto the scene, the 25-year-old big man out of Georgetown finished his third season with averages of 12.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.8 blocks while playing under 28 minutes per game. He proved to be a solid free throw shooter (74.6) for a big man, but his 46.1 success rate from the floor leaves a lot to be desired. Hibbert often appears to lack motivation on the court, which leads to missed defensive assignments and unnecessary fouls. To live up to his full potential, Hibbert will need to play smarter and stay out of foul trouble. The Pacers are a young team with numerous players who could develop into building blocks, but Hibbert is the lone true center on the roster, so he should continue to have plenty of opportunities going forward. Heís not consistent enough at this stage of his career to anchor a fantasy teamís frontcourt, but Hibbert is a quality piece who has the upside to develop into a nightly double-double threat with solid defensive production.

2010-11

Hibbert put himself on the fantasy scene during his sophomore season last year, averaging 11.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.6 blocks. For someone 7-2, 278, those rebounding numbers are unimpressive, but Hibbert is still developing, and he should improve in that area if only because he should see increased playing time in the future (25:06 mpg last year). Moreover, the Pacers lost Troy Murphy during the offseason, so Hibbert is going to be asked to take more responsibility for rebounding duties. The team brought in Bill Walton over the summer to help work on Hibbert's low post game, which should theoretically help. Foul trouble has also plagued Hibbert during his young career, so he'll need to improve his footwork if he wants to see more time on the floor. Hibbert doesn't offer a ton of upside, but he's locked in as Indiana's starting center and should improve during his third year in the league.

2009-10

Hibbert experienced the typical ebbs and flows of a rookie big man in the NBA, occasionally displaying some promise, especially defensively, but all too often he'd fall into foul trouble or out of coach Jim O'Brien's rotation entirely. With Nasho Resterovic gone, there's one fewer player to cut into Hibbert's time. There's a scenario out there where Hibbert could become a 10-10 guy, but a lot of things will have to fall into place first.

2008-09

Hibbert is a traditional back-to-basket center offensively, and a superb shot-blocker on the other end. But he stagnated a bit between his junior and senior seasons at Georgetown, in particular failing to develop that much offensively. There's a risk that he won't be athletic enough to handle opposing big men in the NBA and could be raw in his rookie season. Don't be surprised if he's chained to the bench early on.

2007-08

Hibbert is a traditional back-to-basket center offensively, and a superb shot-blocker on the other end. But he stagnated a bit between his junior and senior seasons at Georgetown, in particular failing to develop that much offensively. There's a risk that he won't be athletic enough to handle opposing big men in the NBA and could be raw in his rookie season. Don't be surprised if he's chained to the bench early on.